Bearcat Baked Potato Soup

Serves:    8 – 16 ounce bowls

Equipment:   Cutting board, chef knife, ounce scale, measuring spoons, measuring cups, 8-10 quart saucepot, 6-10” saute pan, stainless steel solid spoon, soup ladle

Ingredients:                          

14 ounces……………yellow onions
6 each………………..green onions
6 ounces……………..celery
½ pound……………..carrots
6 ounces……………..bacon
2 teaspoons………….ground white pepper
2 teaspoons………….Lawry’s® seasoned salt
2 teaspoons………….cracked black pepper
3 teaspoons………….garlic powder
2 ½ pounds…………..baked potatoes
5 cups………………..chicken stock
1 quart……………….heavy whipping cream
2 cups………………..shredded cheddar cheese

Roux:

2 ounces ……………..butter
2 ounces………………all purpose flour

Procedure:

1. Peel, clean and wash all vegetables.

2. Dice the yellow onion, green onion, celery and carrots into ¼” dice. Reserve 2 tablespoons of chopped green onion for garnishing.

3. Peel baked potatoes and cut into ½” x ½ “ dice. The finished weight of the potatoes needs to be 2 ½ pounds, that means the start weight should be approximately double.

4. Julienne bacon into ¼” strips. The bacon will be easier to cut if it is cold out of the refrigerator or slightly frozen.

5. Heat an 8-10 quart saucepot over high heat for 2-3 minutes. Add bacon and cook until bacon is a light brown and the fat has rendered. Be sure to stir the bacon so none of it sticks together.

6. Lower to medium-high and add the diced vegetables, white pepper, Lawry’s®, cracked black pepper and garlic. Cook until the vegetables are light brown, stirring occasionally. Reserve 2 tablespoons of drained, cooked bacon for garnishing.

7. Add the baked potatoes and cook for approximately 5 minutes or until all the bacon fat has been absorbed. The vegetable and potato mixture should appear dry. When stirring, be careful not to break-up the diced baked potatoes.

8. Add chicken stock and heavy whipping cream to saucepot and bring to a boil.

9. While the soup is coming to a boil, prepare the roux. Heat a 6-10” saute pan over a medium-low heat. Add the butter and melt fully. Add the flour and mix thoroughly. Cook roux for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

10. Add roux to soup using the solid spoon. Normally roux would be added using a wire whip, but in this case the whip would break-up the baked potatoes. Stir gently for 2-3 minutes to ensure the roux is completely disbursed.

11. Reduce soup to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

12. Add 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese and mix thoroughly. The second sup of Shredded cheddar cheese will be used for garnishing.

13. Ladle equal amounts into 8 heated soup bowls and garnish with shredded cheddar cheese, cooked bacon bits and chopped green onion.